The Amazing Race
by sorry this is deleted
Summary: While the Olympics, FIFA and Eurovision are fun, the country as a whole can't really participate in these games. And even if they can, well, not all of them can. So, other than war, is there really some kind of game where all the countries can participate, and prove how superior they are to the rest? Well, how about a race around the world, ridden with challenges and plot twists?


A/N: This is technically a crossover, but 'The Amazing Race' doesn't have a category on the 'new story' section. So, disclaimer, I do not own The Amazing Race, Hetalia or any of its characters. A quick note, I use Mikkel Densen for Denmark here, as it's one of the names approved by Himaruya. Thanks a lot for reading, and I hope you enjoy the story!

The countries' personifications stood in the small room, with their backpacks and coats ready to face the wind. Some were even warming up, stretching out and touching their toes. Some pairs refused to acknowledge their competition, and others sought to befriend them. It was a tough time, for the nations' worth would be proved soon. It had been long since they had truly competed against each other without the use of guns and warfare, but today was the day.

'The Amazing Race' was a popular television show in the United States, which only a few other countries viewed occasionally. It was, however, an irrefutable fact that it was America (and maybe Canada) alone who were truly invested in the show.

Then the upstart got the idea to create his own version of The Amazing Race, and forcing (or convincing, depending on who you asked) several countries to join him in a race across the world. The details were almost unknown, and only a few basic rules had been put down from the start. The first was that the participants were required to participate in platonic pairs (no boyfriends or girlfriends!). It would be telecast around the world, live, but in order to keep the countries' real identities anonymous, they would play as representatives of their respective nations. Only one catch to all of this was that they couldn't make their own teams. To several boisterous nations this was the height of unfairness, but the United Nations Organisation supported it as a quest for global amity. No one really bought that line.

The 24 participants had gathered outside, in a large, wooded area, with no sign of the outside world but a large screen on which a message would be played, announcing the pairs. Naturally, most were anxious. The countries who had made enemies through the years (England and America, for example) were nervous, while the seemingly peaceful countries (Italy, Belgium and Spain) were relaxed. It all mattered on the UN's discretion. Since he had also set the race's course, he had the final say in the winning and losing.

The plasma screen, so far, had nothing but a blue background, with white olive branches around a globe on it. The symbol on the United Nation's flag. They all stood, waiting for an intimidating voice to bring out all their excitement. It would be any moment now. They would know who they're stuck with for 13 intense rounds of racing and regional challenges. The last team to reach the finish line of a round would be instantly eliminated.

"Nations, are you there?" Everyone's gaze immediately switched to the monitor, which was now flickering. Mumbles of 'yes' and 'si' and 'ja' filled the morning air.  
>"All well rested, I trust?" The voice had been edited so mercilessly that it almost sounded like a robot's.<br>"I don't think anyone could be, wakin' up at 5 AM..." Scotland pushed back his hair and leaned against a tree coolly.

"I suppose so." Not even a hint of emotion was betrayed. "I won't hold you much longer, and announce a few final ground rules before letting you proceed. No help whatsoever will be provided to you, except in medical cases. Language barriers are but part of the challenge." Alfred snickered.

"What about accent barriers?"  
>"The United Nations kindly requests the United States of America to not make irrelevant points."<br>"Jeez, oldie, why d'you hafta get so formal with me?'

"Never mind. On with the rules. After announcing your teams, I will give you a location to visit, and from there you will receive further instructions. Also, note that there will be challenges related to the culture of the country you're in, and so forth. I have arranged the countries in such a manner that some will have an advantage in some rounds, and a serious disadvantage in others. Also, the games are based on knowledge, and skill." England directed a pointed glance toward America.

"Once you reach a checkpoint there are seven different kinds of challenges you might receive. One is the 'Fast-Forward'. If you complete said challenge, you can directly go to the end of the round, securing a place in the next. But the challenge will not be easy. The second is the 'Detour', where you will be required to pick one of two given challenges and finish it to proceed. The third, a 'Roadblock', where only one member will be allowed to participate. Who is up to you. Then there's the 'Yield' which is a feature I will explain later in the Race. The 'Intersection' requires two pairs to work together. The 'Speed Bump' is intended to slow down a team on a winning streak. The 'U-Turn 'allows early teams to stall their opponents after a Detour by forcing them to return and complete the task they did not choose from the two."

America whistled and grinned. "Brutal."  
>"That's hardly fair!" objected England<br>"Losers can't be choosers, Angleterre," sang France playfully.  
>"It's makes the game more fun, dude. I mean, imagine how boring it'd be if everyone just kept racing till the finish.."<br>"It'd be fair!"  
>"Shut up before I pair you both together," warned the voice. It was enough to quieten them temporarily.<br>"Alright, without further ado, I'll announce the teams, so we can get started. Once I announce the name of a team, the members are requested to come up with a name."

The countries huddled together instinctively, clutching the straps of the backpacks they'd been provided with. All the packs had some money (100 US Dollars) to only be used in times of emergency, until the authorities arrived. They all carried a letter from their head of state, permitting them to leave their duties for 3 weeks (which was how long the race would last; flight durations and sightseeing included), and a few necessities, like toilet paper and spectacle cases. No translators however, were allowed.

"Italy Veneziano? Are you there? In the show you'll be known as Feliciano Vargas, correct?"  
>"Uh, si!"<br>"You're paired with Italy Romano, otherwise known as Lovino Vargas."  
>Feliciano grinned and attempted to hug his brother, who, surprisingly, let him.<br>"Your team name, gentlemen?"  
>Lovino grinned. "I like the sound of 'gentlemen'...our team name is 'Vaffanculo'. Spelled like it sounds."<br>"But that's so mean, Lovi..."  
>"Do the others know Italian? No."<p>

"Moving on, Ludwig Beilschmidt, Germany, present?"  
>"Ja, I am."<br>"You're paired with Gilbert Beilschmidt, or Prussia."  
>The two brothers shared a glance before wordlessly fist-bumping.<br>"We'll be... die Meister! It means 'the masters', just so you know." Gilbert winked at Hungary, who rolled her eyes.

"Kiku Honda, otherwise Japan?"  
>Kiku nodded, before remembering he had to say something. "Hai! I'm here."<br>"Fair warning, this is going to be the first of the 'problematic' pairings," Kiku grit his teeth. Who did he have enmity with?  
>"Kiku, you are paired with Yao Wang, otherwise called, China."<br>"Aiya!" Yao massaged his temples, not wanting to even glance toward his former brother. Kiku's generally innocent expression turned grave.  
>"We'll call ourselves, the Eastern Wind," he muttered, remembering that it was the name of a lullaby Yao sang to him.<p>

"Alfred, while you are the US, I've gone easy on you this time."  
>"Have ya, old man?" While there was no video, it was easy to imagine the look on the United Nations' face.<br>"You're paired up with Canada. Matthew Williams, step forward."  
>"Hell yeah, bro!"<br>"Yay, bro," came a supposedly equally enthusiastic voice.  
>"Chest bump, bro!"<br>"No, bro."  
>"Why not, bro?'<br>"They hurt, bro."  
>"'Kay, bro. Also, I came up with a list of names a while back depending on who I got paired with. We'll be Mapleburgers!"<p>

"Quiet. Now, England, Arthur Kirkland, I'm sure you and your partner will get along fine."  
>"Oh, wonderful! I'm not getting France then!"<br>"Yes, you should get along. Considering you're one country."  
>"Wait a minute-"<br>"Alistair Kirkland, otherwise, Scotland."  
>The two glared at each other, mumbling swear words under their breath.<br>"I have taken the liberty of naming you both United Kingdom, because, well, you are."  
>"Wales'll be pissed," mumbled Alistair.<p>

"Francis Bonnefoy? I suppose the name should suggest who this is."  
>"Oui! You probably won't have any trouble with me, I don't have any enemies besides England!"<br>"Yes, well, you're paired with Roderich Edelstein, or, Austria."  
>"I object!" Even before a race around the world, Roderich wore a dress shirt with a cravat. "I was forced to play this game by Hungary and Prussia, and now I have to spend it with France? The sooner I get eliminated, the better."<br>Francis looked rather hurt, but quickly named the team 'Class and Grace'.

"Ivan, you're with Iryna Braginskaya. Russia and Ukraine..."  
>It took a while, but a steady smile formed on Iryna's face. "We just have to work together, right?"<br>Ivan gulped. "Yeah." He thought about it for a while, before asking, "How does 'Kievan Rus' sound for a name?"  
>"Doesn't that include Belarus?"<br>"Da, but..." Ivan was cut short by the United Nations.

"Apologies, we do not have time. Spain, Antonio? Are you there?"  
>"Si!" Antonio was the only one happy about this. "Who's my partner?"<br>"Your partner is Portugal, who'll be known as Afonso!"  
>The smile on his face drooped. "What?"<br>Afonso sighed. "I think we get along best out of all the teams here." He smirked.  
>Gilbert coughed loudly in the distance.<br>"We'll call ourselves the Iberian Brothers," continued Afonso.  
>"Because we are!" finished Toni.<p>

"I'm not going to fret too much with the rest of the pairs, sadly, because I've recieved information that the flights are going to be taking off in 8 hours. Apologies,you are no less important than the ones previously mentioned. As I call your names, think of a team name and tell me. Right, Switzerland, Vash, with his sister, Erika or Liechtenstein."

"Hum, I want guns to be in the title", muttered Vash to himself.  
>"And ribbons?" offered his sister.<br>"Guns And Ribbons sounds like a band. Not bad."

"Fine, then. Denmark, Mikkel, and Sweden, Berwald."  
>"What the-are you serious..." Mikkel slapped his forehead, while Berwald glared at the screen.<br>"We'll be Vikings," he decided.  
>"Viking King! And his Viking assistant!" corrected Mikkel.<br>"I'm just settling on Viking Kings." The UN seemed as though he would explode at any moment.

"Norway and Iceland will be together. Your names, as give by yourselves, are Lukas and Emil respectively."  
>"I anticipated this," remarked Lukas. "I've decided on the name 'Whale Brothers'."<br>Emil scowled. "You're not alone, are you?"  
>"Don't tell me it's a bad name."<br>"It's not, but-"  
>"Then it's settled. Unless you want to call it Big and Little Brothers."<br>"No, I don't. Whales are fine."

"Next up, Feliks and Toris. Poland and Lithuania."  
>"Yes!" Feliks turned to his partner. "I vote to call us 'Baltic Badassery'."<br>"Feliks, I don't think such...profanity is allowed."  
>The UN was probably far too tired to protest. "We'll censor it if we need to."<p>

"And last, but certainly not the least, Emma and Eliza. Belgium and Hungary, the only all-girl group in the game."  
>Eliza flexed her muscles, sticking her tongue out at Gilbert. "Nice! We need something that tells the rest to not mess with us."<br>"I was thinking Flower Ladies, but it's okay..." Emma's face was slightly pink.  
>"Hey, femininity is badass too! Flower Ladies is cool."<br>"And we're done! Please stick to your groups."

The large group broke off into tiny huddles, awkward glances being shared and high fives being given. "Alright, I'll leave you with few more details. Now, after this final briefing, I will give you a destination, to where you must fly. Oh, my mistake, I forgot to tell you where you are at the moment. I asked you all to meet at my Headquarters in New York, after which I flew you to a mysterious, isolated destination. I never told you did I?"

"We are in the United States, right?" Alfred was more concerned than he had been for several years.  
>"The flight was quite long. We could be in Europe too," pointed out Arthur.<br>"You all are in Los Angeles, USA." Alfred pumped his fist in the air.

"Of course, you won't be here for very long. Now, after this final talk with you, I'll give you a location to go to, and you must head to the airport in one of the 13 taxis outside this building. Now, I must warn you that some rounds will not be this fair. In some legs of this race, the teams that arrive earliest will be given a better flight, or train, or whatever. Expect a lot of twists, not just from me, but also from your competition. It's easy to throw someone off by telling them about the wrong flight. Anyway, your location is..." While the UN was not the best at dramatic pauses, all those present had wide eyes glued to the screen. "Locarno."

Most of the nations looked at their partners, heads cocked and faces contorted in confusion, while one team hugged each other making inhumane sounds. Erika clung to her brother, smiling widely. "At least you'll know your way around!" Vash smirked. "We're going to win this."

"Locarno, Switzerland," clarified the UN.  
>"Everyone, be careful!" began Roderich. "Especially when exiting customs."<br>"Why?" asked Vash, gritting his teeth.  
>"It's Switzerland, you could get run over by a tractor." Vash groaned, as the room filled with muffled laughter.<br>"You all..." The United Nations' palm could be heard slapping his table. "Now be prepared. Once I give the word, the Race has begun."  
>The countries turned to the screen and grasped the straps of their backpacks, even obtaining a runner's stance.<br>"Ready, on you marks, get set..."  
>The focus on their faces was astonishing, and almost frightening.<br>"Go!"

The nimble shapes left the room, some crashing into each other as they tried to go through the thin door frame. As the room lost the feeling of life, cars started outside the building. The UN sighed. "I forgot to tell them to turn off the projector..."


End file.
